Big Bone Lick State Historic Site

This was a heck of a place to find. First, we were coming from Little Rock on a 2 week road trip across the country with our kids back in July. Time was tight, but with extra stops (Grand Ol’ Opry?) we were running late and worried they would close their gates. Here in AZ some parks close the gates at 10pm and you’re locked out. We called every number we could find, driving through pouring rain, and finally found someone who eased our minds that they would be open and there was no gate to close. *WHEW* Of course, then we had to find it. Driving in the dark, I admit we thought Google Maps had lost its mind a few times… it was dark, windy, hilly, up and down and we were really starting to doubt things while pulling a 6,000lb trailer. But we found it and pleased all the other campers by pulling in at 10:30pm to set up!
The campground is nice. Not out of this world, but not slummy. Out of the 2 week trip, this site probably required the most ambitious leveling of our trailer… it was NOT a flat site. And the water connection was NOT close… we carry a 25′ hose and it was literally stretched off the ground, and that’s AFTER moving the trailer closer. So plan for that… bring 50′ at least, and maybe an an extension for your electric, though in our case that fit ok.
We ended up staying there 2 nights as we hit up the Creation Museum (surprisingly cool). The pool was a super nice thing to have at the end of the day. Also helped that it was only 15 minutes from Skyline Chili. I moved West about 15 years ago and was long overdue for my fix. I drove for take out while my wife took the kids swimming. Campground was nice to walk around, decent playground. Didn’t use the showers so can’t speak to them. I’d give it 3 ½ stars by itself, but the pool and playground push this happy dad up to 4.

This park is only about an hour from Lexington, and about 30 minutes from Cincinnati. This review is for the campground and not the actual park. The campground features 62 campsites. The water hook ups are shared by two sites and is a stretch to the water hookup to the site, so make sure that you have an extended hose if you plan to hookup the water. We last weekend and swimming pool was already emptied for the season. There was a small playground, across from the shower house.
There was only one shower house, but it had three showers, and three rest rooms stalls and it was clean and stocked with hand soap and toilet paper during our entire stay. There was also washers and dryers available at a central service building/​shower house. In addition to the campground store, there were also Coke machines, which was a nice welcomed feature that I’d not noticed at any of the other camp grounds I’ve been to.
The miniature golf course is on top of a hill, with a magnificent view. The surfaces on the course were newly resurfaced and by that, I mean the outdoor turf carpeting is new. The cost to play miniature golf isn’t included in the campground rate, but it was quite minimal. You pay at the entrance which dubs as the campground store.
My favorite thing about this campground was the two mile loop hiking trail. The trail starts near the covered pavilion/​common area and it leads to what is called the lake. I really wouldn’t consider it a lake, I’d call it a big pond. But the signs call it a lake. You can fish in the lake/​pond but there isn’t any swimming allowed.
There were three camp host sites onsite. I’ve come to realize that camp hosts are usually annoyingly too friendly or extremely rude. For example, the first night we were sitting at the campfire, one of the hosts drives his golf cart to us to introduce himself.
Our site we the very last site, near the exit. On Sunday, the day that most people were checking out, there was a long line of people blocking our site, because they were all in line for the dump station. Which wasn’t a big deal, we are never in a hurry to check out. Check out was at 1:00 and at 1:10 one of the camp hosts approached us extremely rudely. Some of her exact words were «you’re making us work unnecessary overtime». Who knows what that means, but never has a late checkout ever been an issue, especially 15 minutes for a late checkout and on a Sunday when there aren’t people scheduled to check in. Where does the state park people get these people?!? I’m about to give up on Kentucky State Parks, thanks to the people who they choose to allow to be camp hosts. They basically take ownership of the park, without considering that we paid money to camp there. Give these people a site and a golf cart and they act like they own the land.
One last thing… the racoon featured in Unilocal pictures isn’t as cute as he is annoying. That little varmint got into our cooler and took our dinner and lunch for the next day. So, don’t think he won’t rob you too.

The hiking trail and museum were fyn, and watching the bison was AMAZING. But if you’re considering camping here, don’t. The spots aren’t that great, and constant harassment and micromanagement from Tom the campground host ruined the experience.

What an amazing camping trip! If you have never been camping and are ready to give it a shot, you must go to Big Bone Lick. This is a very nice campground with lots to do. We went swimming, fishing, hiking and saw some amazing Bison. The museum was very interesting as well. We felt welcomed and safe at this campground. The staff was friendly and accommodating. One of the campground host have us some sunscreen since we forgot ours. I loved it and so did everyone else. The other campers were very friendly as well. So many came from out of state. Were met a group from California and North Carolina. We are definitely going back. Be sure o make reservations because they are easily booked and reservations make checking in a breeze, less than 2 minutes and we were at our site. What are you waiting for? Make a reservation!

Big Bone Lick State Park. We hung out on the playground, hiked some trails, then went to see the bison they have there. Since its so early in the year I guess not a lot of people have been up there because they were not hiding like they usually are. There were about 6 adults and two babies that were right up to the fence. We didn’t stay long though because the mom was getting anxious that we were there and started making a lot of noise. I don’t trust that little fence to save us!

This is the first time I ever saw a buffalo alive and moving around. The experience of seeing such a robust, majestic animal huffing and puffing in real life had a profound affect on me!

Camped there this past weekend. Campground was clean and sites were very spacious. The pool was on the small side with limited seating. And excessive rules! No food drink snax, I’m not sure what that was about but it gets a little to hot poolside not to be allowed at least a bottle of water.
Based on the size of the campground I was surprised there was only 1 bathroom. We mostly used the woods rather than walk a half mile to pee.
We did the putt putt and it was pretty run down and cheesy but still fun and it didn’t cost much.
The museum was interesting but kind of empty, not enough explination of what you were looking at. The bison were so far away even though we went at the suggested time for best viewing. There was very little information about them as well.
The camp staff when checking in was not very friendly and a bit of a smart ass.
We had a nice time overall but I doubt I would ever camp here again.

We decided to check out this place on a whim and are so glad we did! We took our toddler with us and she had a blast discovering bugs and plants and we all enjoyed visiting the buffalo! This park is great for all ages!

What a name! Giggle, Giggle. We’ve camped here before. The first time we made the mistake of camping @ the top loop. Why was this mistake? Because we use the state park facilities and there this NO bathroom/​shower house in the upper loop. (hint! hint!)
This time we camped much closer to the pool and facilities and it was much nicer.
I did like the fact that they have activities on the weekends for the kids, which is getting harder and harder to find in state parks.
2 suggestions!
1. There IS a path that makes walking to the museum/​visitor center alot easier when walking from the campground… promote that!
2. All state parks NEED money! As a family, when camping, I throw away cans, aluminium, etc. Put a plastic box @ each site and encourage folks to put their recyclables in the box instead of throwing them in the dumpster. Imagine the extra money you may bring in to your camp ground!
Staff is friendly. Bathrooms not perfect.

Ok who hasn’t driven down 75 and giggled when they saw the sign for Big Bone Lick State Park? No one? Yeah that’s what i thought…
It was a nice spring day so me and the hubby decided to do something new. It’s about a 30 minute drive from Cincinnati, so not too bad to get out of town for awhile. There is a campground also with a lake and putt putt golf and a pool, but its only open in the warm months. you can’t get anywhere near it when it’s not open.
There is a small visitors center that has a gift shop, that any person working there will open up if it’s locked… as in there’s normally only a janitor or a guard during the slow periods. All sorts of goodies in the shop for old and young, it’s kind of neat. There’s also a small «museum» in the center. There’s a huge mastodon head, and tons of bones on shelves with stories. And it gives you the history of the area. Outside are some clay plaster dinosaurs recreated, as to what might have gone down in the swamp. Kinda neat.
Did you know a «Lick» is actually another word for a «Spring»? As in a hot spring. Big Bone Hot Springs just wasn’t fitting as the area is no longer a swampy hot spring that it used to be. And it got its name Big Bone, because guess what? People found big bones here! Creative right? Not so dirty anymore once you know whats going on. But it is neat to learn some history, there are signs around telling you about whats going on. There are a few playgrounds and picnic shelters which are nice. There’s also a bison farm! It’s a .2 mile walk from the visitors center, so easily accessible. You can go back the same way or continue to take a trail. Grab a map from the visitor center. It’ll be helpful. The trails aren’t as well marked except for marking on the trees, so look for those. There are tons of trails to take from short to long. But it can get real muddy after it rains fyi.

This a very nice KY state park. I had drove by the sign on the highway hundreds of times and always wanted to go. It has such a funny name that I just can’t help but laugh when I drive by. So it was a nice warm day in February and we thought why not go for a hike. We didn’t want to go somewhere we had been to before so I though of here. It is just about 30 mins from our house. We got there went in to the museum and gift shop and then took the hike to see the bison. It had rain the day before so it was muddy but we still had a good time. We then went a saw the lake and took some pictures. We will have to go back in the summer to hike and maybe camp.

With a name like that, who doesn’t want to check this place out?!
Besides the name, this place made it on my list for two reasons: bison and hiking.
Overall, the park is small, a friend and I hiked what we figured to be the majority of the place in an afternoon (around 5 miles):

Trails were well maintained with some decent hills; a good place to spend an unseasonably warm late-​fall afternoon. The swinging foot bridge was closed which was highly disappointing. Lucky there animals to cheer me up.
The bison were friendly and photogenic. I mean, seriously, there are bison just chilling in the park; that and a rather random fenced-​in display of prehistoric fiberglass creatures (giant sloth!) do add something special to this place. (hint: the fence gate is broken and you can walk right in for awesome photo ops, but the creatures are fragile!) There is a museum which I regretfully did not check out; it gives me a reason to return!

Another random great find via the Unilocal app. I totally found the name hilarious… how could I not visit this place? (and seriously… Beaver Rd!?!) Anyways, juvenile thoughts aside, the park was easy to find and there are lots of things to explore. I had no idea about the historical significance of this park, did you? See:
I apparently missed the bison that they have on site, I’ll have to catch them on some other day. I noticed they have all kinds of programs for the public, mostly wilderness survival and other nature based. This would be a great place to take your kids. I don’t think it costs to enter the park, but I could be wrong. There are plenty of places to have a picnic or event. There is a campground and even a small grocery store on site. Check their official site for rates and schedules.

Nice camping, beautiful countryside, but under a flight pattern for the local airport… quite noisy in the evening…

Only in KY! I had to stop and take a picture at the sign… Everybody must do this. It is required for pure laughter later on.

Sure, the name has been making folks chuckle for years (doesn’t help that the town of Beaver Lick is nearby), but hey this place is really famous. Fossils found on the grounds of this park have traveled the globe, decorating Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello and joining the King of France’s oddity collection.
The bones found at Big Bone belonged to wooly mammoths, mastodons, ground sloths, and buffalo – animals who perished when they stopped at the mineral springs for nourishment. The park houses a modest collection of pre-​historic mammal bones, but unfortunately the most prized discoveries no longer reside in Kentucky. Nonetheless, the museum is worth checking out.
Beyond the park’s educational appeal, there’s plenty of outdoorsy stuff to do. From mini-​golf, fishing, hiking, playing sports (tennis, volleyball, softball, and horsehoes) to relaxing at the pool or picnicking, Big Bone has a something for the whole family to enjoy.
Though I’m not a big fan of large RV parks/​campgrounds, Big Bone’s is really clean and well-​maintained.

If anyone wonders how I «got this way» maybe it has something to do with the fact that some of my earliest memories are of being taken to family reunions at Big Bone Lick State Park.
Yes, that is the actual name of this park. Check the address too, then make your own joke from all the parts.
This is a stupendous state park, and it is the birthplace of American Vertebrate Paleontology. The locals found a huge cache of dinosaur and mammoth bones there, hence the name. The «lick» park comes from the fact that the Native Americans knew this place as a salt lick where game animals would flock to enjoy the salts exposed in the hillsides.
Beyond that, it is a lovely big state park with plenty of places to frolic, picnic, and enjoy the beauty of Kentucky’s countryside.
C’mon – give Big Bone Lick a try. You know you want to!